


Needs

by UndyingEmbers



Category: Pillars of Eternity
Genre: Abuse mentioned, Coming Out, F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-03
Updated: 2019-12-03
Packaged: 2021-02-26 00:07:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,322
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21664192
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UndyingEmbers/pseuds/UndyingEmbers
Summary: After Tekēhu tells the Watcher about his time with the Rautaian admiral, she tells him a story of her own.
Relationships: Tekēhu/The Watcher
Comments: 1
Kudos: 12





	Needs

“Captain, what has been your most…impressive feat of seduction?” Tekēhu asked almost randomly one day as he and Amali were on the deck of _The Valiant_.

That…was actually a question Amali sort of dreaded. “I once peeped in on a xaurip mating ritual. I hid behind a stalagmite.”

The marine godlike let out a laugh, like he hadn’t been expecting that. “Well done, I say!”

Amali let out a small laugh, scratching the back of her head. “In all seriousness, though…” She sighed. If what she was about to tell him next drove him away, then this courtship wasn’t worth holding onto, she supposed. Still, she would have liked to think that she was building a connection with him. “I actually haven’t had sex with a partner before.”

“You…haven’t?” Tekēhu asked. “Ekera, I’m surprised. I thought…”

“Well, it’s not like I’m completely innocent,” said Amali. “I masturbate,” she said out loud, earning her some strange looks from the crew.

“Ha! Self-care is most important, I say,” Tekēhu said with a large grin on his face. “I once bedded a Rautaian admiral without exchanging a word…”

The marine godlike told the story about his encounter with this strong, powerful, imposing woman, going into salacious detail over how he snuck to the Brass Citadel wearing nothing but a peasant’s cloak to cover his nude body, barged into the Officer’s Lounge, and danced naked on the table where the hazanui and her officers were discussing war before the real battle between the two powers began right there on the tabletop. Amali listened with rapt attention, trying to figure out how all this made her feel. By then, the crew was trying very hard to make it seem like they were still busy with their duties. Even Maia looked intrigued, listening in from the quarter deck.

“Ours was a battle of endurance, not tactics, but I cherished a victory for the Huana,” Tekēhu concluded with a flourish.

Amali chuckled. A moment of silence fell between them as Amali gazed at the water.

“Tekēhu,” she said. “I think I might also have a story for you after all.”

“Oh?” he asked, raising his eyebrows in interest.

Amali smiled and stepped away from the rail. “Maybe we should go below deck, hmm?”

“Oh, captain,” he said. “Is this tale too naughty for the crew?”

“Not quite,” she said. “Maybe a touch too personal. Come.”

He followed her below deck to the captain’s quarters. Amali closed the door behind them. Tekēhu sauntered over to her bed and sat down.

“So, what tales of debauchery has my captain cooked up?” he asked.

“Silly,” she said. “I just told you I’ve never done it with a partner before.”

“Ekera, I jest,” he said, getting comfortable. “So, what do you have for me?”

Amali sat down next to him. They were so close that Amali could smell the sea on his skin.

“When I first moved out of my _pare’s_ home in Old Vailia,” she said, “I lived in my landlady’s attic. The neighbor had a daughter who was my age. She had long, tangled hair, and her face was full of freckles. We never spoke, but I’d see her sometimes when I would go outside to get food or visit my _pare_. Sometimes at night, I would wake to the sounds of her father screaming and throwing things at her. Then I’d hear the sounds of her crying.

“One night, I was staying up late working on a painting. Again, I heard the sounds of her and her father screaming at each other. Except this time, from my window I saw her run out of the house and down the street.

“I rushed out of my landlady’s house and caught up to the girl as she stopped to cry at the foot of the communal well. My appearance startled her, but after I explained that I meant her no harm, she allowed me to sit down next to her.

“She wouldn’t tell me what happened, but she let me hold her as she cried. Her pain was so palpable that I felt it as if it were my own, and I could do nothing but stay and be there for her.

“I snuck her back to my place. I showed her all the drawings I had on my wall, then the both of us slept together in my bed.

“I only really interacted with her for that night, but I’ve never felt so connected with anyone before. I wanted to keep her safe, no matter what.”

“What happened next?” asked Tekēhu.

Amali smiled sadly. “Remember I never had any formal training for my cypher abilities until I was able to get passage to the Dyrwood for my studies. As I lay next to her, I accidentally picked up a stray thought from her as she went to sleep:

“ _At least this monster doesn’t beat me_.”

Amali didn’t have time to say anything else before she was suddenly enveloped in a gentle hug.

“You are wonderful and beautiful, captain,” said Tekēhu. “Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.” He kissed the death godlike on the head at the base of one of her horns. Practically pressed against his bare chest, Amali momentarily froze. Her heart skipped with excitement for one beat.

She gently pushed away from him. “I actually don’t begrudge her too much, to be honest. I had no right to hear that, and a single stray thought doesn’t necessarily indicate who a person is as a whole.”

“What happened to her?”

“She was gone by the time I woke up,” said Amali. “Ran away, I think. I never saw her again, and I never heard another sound from the neighbors after that night.”

She sighed. “I know it wasn’t so raunchy compared to your tales, pretty fish…”

“Ekera, it was a piece of you, something personal, as you say,” said Tekēhu.

“Tekēhu, there is actually something I need to discuss with you before we go any further,” said Amali.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Part of the reason, well actually most of the reason, why I’ve never been with anyone was because I’ve never met anyone I’ve been interested in having sex with,” she said. “Until now, I thought that I wasn’t capable of it.”

“Ah,” said Tekēhu, a look of understanding playing on his face.

“The thing is,” said Amali. She took his hands in hers. “I know I really care about you, and I want so badly for us to continue, but as for sex…there’s definitely…something there. The thought of you dancing naked on that hazanui’s table really stirred something inside me.”

Tekēhu chuckled. “If you would like some more fuel for your imagination, I have many more stories.”

She laughed. “I’d love to hear them. But seriously, I may not know if we’ll be sexually compatible until we cross that bridge. Is this going to be a problem for us?”

“I will not lie to you, captain. I am a desiring beast. I need the physical closeness and vulnerability that sex can provide, and I want to share my body as well as my heart with you.” He looked down at their entwined hands.

“Having said that,” he continued, “I would rather see this through to the end and have my delicate heart broken than go my whole life wondering what could have been.” 

Amali smiled. “Me too.”

“Ekera, I hope my stories weren’t making you uncomfortable,” he said.

“Not at all,” she said, her voice dipping a little lower. “I actually enjoy your advances.”

Tekēhu grinned and stood up. “In that case, if you liked that last story, I know a few erotic dances I could perform for you.”

Amali could only laugh again. “Maybe later. After that story you told, I will need some time alone.”

“Be kind to yourself, captain,” said Tekēhu. “Make sure there is something left for me.”


End file.
